Lesson One Hundred Forty Three: Higher Than Favor

One who is grateful for a favor derives more prosperity from his gratefulness than from the favor, because favors pertain to life in this world whereas gratitude is the capital of this world and the other world.1

Gratitude is more than mere appreciation by tongue ; it includes actions that demonstrate appreciation in practical terms and it involves using each favor in a proper way. Such gratitude for a favor results in blessings and prosperity far greater than that provided by the favor itself. Using the favors for seeking God’s pleasure and meeting His servants’ needs is a capital that earns honor in this world as well as eternal prosperity in the hereafter, while a favor itself may confer only a material blessing.

In other words, when one receives a favor, he receives something useful for this world and if he shows gratitude for it in appropriate ways, he then receives something additional which is even better : additional rewards both for this world and the hereafter.